Coinbase has accused the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) of blocking access to crucial documents tied to its Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests about the financial regulator’s overreach in targeting crypto firms.

The crypto exchange alleges that the FDIC is withholding key information despite a court ruling requiring disclosure.

Coinbase Challenges FDIC Over Alleged Hidden ‘Pause Letters’

On January 17, Paul Grewal, Coinbase’s Chief Legal Officer, criticized the FDIC’s handling of its FOIA requests. The controversy centers on the letters the FDIC issued to banks involved in cryptocurrency-related services.

These letters reportedly advised financial institutions to halt their crypto operations until the agency completed regulatory reviews. While Coinbase succeeded in obtaining some of them through legal action, Grewal claims that the FDIC deliberately limited its document search.

He suggested additional pause letters may exist, but the agency confined its efforts to those explicitly mentioned in a previous report. Requests for a broader review were denied, with the FDIC reportedly stating that fulfilling the request would take a year or more.

“Without telling us or the Court, FDIC limited their search for pause letters to only those ‘contained’ in the report — so other pause letters may exist. When we asked them to fix their supposed “reasonable interpretation” and stop playing word games, they told us it would take at least a year,” Grewal stated.

Grewal described the situation as part of a larger pattern of obstructive behavior. He accused the FDIC of failing to comply with the court’s directive. He also emphasized that Coinbase remains committed to uncovering the full scope of the agency’s involvement in stalling crypto innovation.

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Author: Oluwapelumi Adejumo